Container and closure



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 19, 1963 Q ILII Oct. 5, 1965 H. KAMBERSKY 3,209,388

CONTAINER AND CLOSURE Filed June 19, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l i H 2O 19 M United States Patent 3,209,388 CONTAINER AND CLOSURE Helene Kambersky, Hegelgasse 6, Vienna I, Vienna, Austria Filed June l 1963, Ser. No. 288,937 Claims priority, application Austria, Feb. 18, 1963, A 1,238/ 63 6 Claims. (Cl. 15521) This invention relates to a closure for containers having a screw-threaded neck, particularly for containers adapted to discharge their contents in response to pressure applied to the containers walls, such as squeeze tubes.

A closure for squeeze tubes is known in which one or more disc-like gaskets of cork or the like are fixedly mounted inside the neck of the tube. The closing cap has a closing pin, which is inserted into an opening of the gaskets and is frictionally held against the normal pressure of the contents of the tube.

This closure has the disadvantage that it must be incorporated into a special type of tubes and cannot be indiscriminately applied to a conventional squeeze tube, for instance subsequently to existing tubes. Besides, said structure is only designed to take up a certain pressure of the contents of the tube, namely the normal pressure thereof, and cannot adjust itself to different, particularly higher pressures, cork being used as a gasket material. Such higher pressures may be caused, e.g., by an unintended squeezing of the tube. Finally, the friction between the pin and the gasket is continually reduced by a repeated use of the tube and there is no provision for a readjustment, without which the function of the closure is at least unreliable.

The invention provides a closure for containers, which closure eliminates the above-mentioned disadvantages by the provision of a screw cap suitable for a threaded interengagement with the screw threads of the neck and containing a gasket consisting of at least one disc, and of a closure cap adapted to be fitted on said screw cap and having a central closing pin, which is adapted to be inserted through an opening in the top of the screw cap into an opening in the gasket and is frictionally held in the latter in its inserted position.

It is desirable to cause the gasket to bear peripherally on the inside wall of the screw cap and to adapt it for a change in the diameter of its central opening by an at least regional surface compression.

Moreover, the diameter of the closing pin may be so related to the inside diameter of the neck of the tube that an annular zone is provided, in which the pressure of the contents of the tube can act on the gasket and the pressure acting on this annular zone is used for varying the diameter of the opening of the gasket and consequently for automatically adjusting the friction between the periphery of the closing pin and the rim of the opening in the gasket.

For effecting readjustment, the effective friction between the periphery of the closing pin and the rim of the opening in the gasket which resists removal of the closing cap may be varied by screwing the screw cap more or less tightly to vary the compression of the gasket.

The invention will be described more fully with reference to two embodiments shown by way of example on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing a first embodiment and FIG. 2 is a similar view of that of FIG. 1 showing a modification.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on line III-III of FIG. 2.

With reference to FIG. 1, the neck 2 of a conventional squeeze tube 3 is formed with external screw threads 1 in 3,209,388 Patented Oct. 5, 1965 threaded engagement with a screw cap 4, which contains a gasket 5 consisting of a disc of a resilient material. The gasket adjoins the inside surface of the top portion 6 of the screw cap 4 and the periphery of the gasket bears on the inside wall of the screw cap. A preferably circular opening 7 is formed at the center of the top portion 6 of the screw cap and an opening 7' substantially aligned with the opening 7 is formed in the gasket 5. The contents of the tube can be caused to emerge through these openings in response to pressure exerted on the tube wall 8. The drawing shows the tube in closed condition with a closing cap 9 fitted on and coacting with the screw cap 4. A closing pin 10 is centrally disposed in the cavity of the closing cap 9 and extends through the opening 7 in the top portion 6 of the screw cap and is a sealing fit in the opening 7' of the gasket 5 and frictionally held in the latter. The pin 10 has a rounded lower end 10'. The diameter of the pin 10 is so related to the inside diameter of the neck 2 of the tube that there is a sufiiciently wide annular zone 11 between the same, in which zone the pressure of the contents of the tube can act on the gasket 5. The required area of this annular zone 11 depends substantially on the elasticity of the material of the gasket 5, because an increase in the pressure in the tube 3 will cause the gasket 5 to be forced in the zone 11 against the top portion 6 of the screw cap. Because this gasket 5 bears throughout its periphery on the inside wall of the screw cap, a radial expansion of the gasket caused by the above-mentioned compression must result in an increased friction between the opening 7 in the gasket and the closing pin 10. In order to attain a predetermined increase of this friction in response to a given increase of the pressure in the tube, the area of the annular zone 11 must be somewhat larger in the case of a less deformable resilient gasketing material than with a gasket consisting of a material having a high elastic deformability.

The closure according to the invention has the advantage that it enables a reliable closing of containers of the kind mentioned above whereas the undesirable screwing operation to open and close the container whenever it is used is eliminated. For the user, e.g., of a tube, it is suflicient to unscrew the usual screw cap of the same and to replace it by the screw cap 4 of the closure according to the invention. The opening and closing of the tube will then be effected only by withdrawing and fitting, respectively, the closing cap.

The closing pin 10 inserted into the opening 7' of the gasket affords a tight fit in the opening of the tube and together with the closing cap 9 carrying the pin is held against any presure of the contents of the tube by the friction effective between the pin 10 and the gasket 5. If this friction is insuflicient for reliably holding the closing cap or has decreased after repeated use of the container, the screw cap 4 may simply be retightened to increase the compression of the gasket 5 and thus to expand the same radially so that the friction and with it the force tending to hold the closing pin is increased.

Because the pressure of the contents of the tube can act on the gasket 5 in the annular zone 11 and the area of this zone is selected in view of the elasticity of the gasket, the frictional force is not only due to the expansion of the gasket 5 adjusted by the screw cap 4, but an additional radial expansion and increase of friction is obtained automatically in response to the internal pressure in the container.

Hence, the frictional force by which the container is held closed is composed of a pre-adjusted component, which remains constant at least for considerable time, and a variable component, which is automatically adjusted in response to the pressure caused by the contents of the tube.

When the closure is to be opened, it is sufiicient to overcome the constant component of the frictional force. This component may be relatively small. Nevertheless the closure will afford a reliable seal even against relatively high pressure owing to the automatic adjustment.

Another advantage of this closure resides in that it can be unscrewed from emptied containers for re-use with a new container.

FIGS. 2 and 3 show an embodiment in which the closure is combined with an applicator and stripper device.

In FIGS. 2 and 3, like references as in FIG. 1 refer to like parts.

The closing pin 20 is similar to the closing pin of FIG. 1 but has in its lower end an internal screw thread 21 in threaded engagement with a screw-threaded pin 22, which forms an axial extension at the top end of an applicator element generally designated 23. The applicator element has a core 24 surrounded by projections 26 or lands 26 radially projecting from the core .24 and defining interstices in the form of annular grooves 25. The outside diameter of the lands is substantially the same as the diameter of the hole 7' in the gasket 5 when the closing pin 20 has been withdrawn. In this embodiment, the gasket 5 serves also as a stripper for removing surplus material from the applicator element 23 when the same is being withdrawn from the container so that the contents of the container is retained on the element 23 only in the grooves 25.

The contents of the container may have such a high consistency as to resist a rotation of the applicator element 23 when the closure cap 19, to which the closing pin 20 is secured, is unintentionally rotated. To prevent this, the closing cap 19 may be fitted on the screw cap 14 so as to be non-rotatable relative thereto. To this end, the closing cap 19 and the screw cap 14 may be formed with peripherally interlocking portions preventing their relative rotation. As an example, FIG. 3 shows the screw cap 14 to be formed on its outside periphery with two diametrically opposite flats 15 in snug engagement with two diametrically opposite flats 15 on the inside periphery of the closing cap 19.

The screw cap 14 will normally be screwed sufficiently tightly on the neck to prevent an unintended rotation of the closing cap 19 together with the screw cap 14 relative to the neck 2, particularly in the sense in which the screw cap 14 is tightened on the neck 2. If the screw threads connecting the screw cap 4 to the neck 2, on the one hand, and the screw threads 21 connecting the closing pin to the pin extension 22 of the applicator element 23, on the other hand, have the same hand, a rotation of the closing cap 19 and screw cap 14 in a sense tending to unscrew the screw cap 14 from the neck 2 will tend to tighten the applicator element 23 on the closing pin 20 if the contents of the tube 3 resists a rotation of the applicator element 23.

What is claimed is:

1. A closure device for a container having an externally threaded open neck, said closure device comprising a generally cup-shaped member having a top portion and an internally threaded sidewall adapted to be threaded on said neck, the cup-shaped member having an outer surface which is cylindrically-shaped, the top portion being provided with a central bore, a disc-shaped gasket in said cup-shaped member sandwiched between said top portion and said neck and covering the opening in the latter, said gasket having a central bore in axial registry with and smaller in diameter than the bore in said top portion, said closure device further comprising a removable cap member including a skirt portion defining a cylindrical cavity, said skirt portion being adapted for being slidably engaged on the cylindrically-shaped outer surface of said cup-shaped member, a closure pin fixed on and extending from said cap member within said cylindrical cavity, said pin being of uniform cross-section and penetrating through both of said bores, said pin being in frictional engagement with the bore in said gasket.

2. A closure device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said gasket is an elastically deformable member, said gasket having a rim in peripheral contact with the said sidewall along the inner surface thereof, said gasket being elastically deformed by the degree of threaded engagement between the cup-shaped member and the neck of the container to vary the magnitude of the friction between the closure pin and the gasket.

3. A closure device as claimed in claim 2 comprising an applicator element secured to said closure pin and extending therefrom in axial alignment, said applicator element having a diameter smaller than that of the closure pin, said applicator element being provided with circumferential grooves.

4. A container with an adjustable degree of closure comprising a container body, said body including an externally threaded cylindrical neck portion with an upper rim and a circular opening, a cap member of cup-shape including a top portion and a depending sidewall portion, said sidewall portion being internally threaded and in threaded engagement with the neck portion of said container, a disc-shaped gasket in said cap member in peripheral contact with the sidewall portion thereof and sandwiched between the top portion of said cap member and the upper rim of the neck portion, said top portion being provided with a central bore coaxial with the opening in said neck portion, said gasket being provided with a central bore in axial registry with and smaller in diameter than the bore in said top portion, and a removable closing cap including a depending skirt slidably supported on the said cap member, said closing cap including a fixed central closure pin extending in the bore of the top portion and the bore of the gasket, said pin having a uniform circular cross-section and being in frictional engagement in the bore of the gasket while extending with clearance in the bore of the top member, said gasket being an elastically deformable member and being deformed by the degree of threading engagement between the cap member and the neck of the container to vary the magnitude of frictional engagement between the closure pin and the gasket, whereby the degree of closure of the container can be adjusted.

5. A container as claimed in 4 wherein said sidewall of said cap member has an outer surface, said skirt of said closing cap having an inner surface in slidable engagement with said outer surface of said sidewall but being secured against relative rotation, said outer surface of the sidewall and the inner surface of the closing cap having common shapes constituted by a circular portion and a fiat portion.

6. A closure device as claimed in claim 4 comprising an applicator element secured to said closure pin and extending therefrom in axial alignment, said applicator element having a diameter smaller than that of the closure pin, said applicator element being provided with circumferential grooves.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,854,451 4/32 Cooney 222546 X 1,978,455 10/34 Geerlings 22292 2,168,179 8/39 Tobey 15538 2,556,003 6/51 Sandell et al 15538 X 3,058,527 10/62 Dennis et al 222542 X 3,124,281 3/64 Stull 222542 X FOREIGN PATENTS 760,292 10/56 Great Britain.

RAPHAEL M. LUPO, Primary Examiner. 

1. A CLOSURE DEVICE FOR A CONTAINER HAVING AN EXTERNALLY THREADED OPEN NECK, SAID CLOSURE DEVICE COMPRISING A GENERALLY CUP-SHAPED MEMBER HAVING A TOP PORTION AND AN INTERNALLY THREADED SIDEWALL ADAPTED TO B THREADED ON SAID NECK, THE CUP-SHAPED MEMBER HVING AN OUTER SURFACE WHICH IS CYLINDRICALLY-SHAPED, THE TOP PORTION BEING PROVIDED WITH A CENTRAL BORE, A DISC-SHAPED GASKET IN SAID CUP-SHAPED MEMBR SANDWICHED BETWEEN SAID TOP PORTION AND SAID NECK AND COVERING THE OPENIGN IN THE LATTER, SAID GASKET HAVING A CENTRAL BORE IN AXIAL REGISTRY WITH SAID SMALLER IN DIAMETER THAN THE BORE IN SAID TOP PORTION, SAID CLOSURE DEVICE FUTHER COMPRISING A REMOVABLE CAP MEMBER INCLUDING A SKIRT PORTION DEFINING A CYLINDRICAL CAVITY, SAID SKIRT PROTION BEING ADAPTED FOR BEING SLIDABLY ENGAGED ON THE CYLINDRICALLY-SHAPED OUTER SURFACE OF SAID CUP-SHAPED MEMBER, A CLOSURE PIN FIED ON AND EXTENDING FROM SAID CAP MEMBER WITHIN SAID CYLINDRICAL CAVITY, SAID PIN BEING OF UNIFORM CROSS-SECTION AND PENETRATING THROUGH BOTH OF SAID BORES, SAID PIN BEING IN FRICTIONAL ENGAGEMENT WITH THE BORE IN SAID GASKET. 